Hope
by Izzu
Summary: AU. A what-if deviant of what could have happen if Yumehito actually survived at the end.


az: R&R as usual. AU. Because nagging plots nagged. POV is between Kato and Ainosuke.

* * *

Hope

Written by Izzu alias honou-no-izumi

o

o

"No... you can't die now! _Niichan!_"

Ainosuke shouted. He screamed. He held his brother's face close to himself as he could barely feel the soft breeze coming out from his brother.

_Yes... niichan was still alive! Please hold on a bit longer!_

He shouted for help again, praying that not everyone had deserted the place yet. He prayed to god, he asked for mercy. Certainly even someone like his brother deserved a second chance at life...

Somehow, in his desperation... his prayers had been answered. Lucky there were still people who actually stopped to help them. Luckily the nearest hospital they could've reached was still undeserted. Even as none of them actually gave him some kind of assurance that his brother might survive, Ainosuke prayed against fate. So that a miracle just might happen for him.

xxx

Kato and Sayama-sensei dashed into the hospital corridors to find Ainosuke staring into space at some bench nearby. She tried to nudge him to make him say something as the young boy remained in a daze. Kato sighed as he glanced around, wondering what to do.

Not long after, the emergency room sign flashed off and several of the hospital personnel wheeled Sakisaka out of the room, with various tubes and wires attached to him. He frowned as Ainosuke immediately perked up and followed them, all the time repeatedly asking if his _brother_ was all right. He shook his head as he turned and met the doctor in charge before he told both him and Sayama-sensei about the situation.

xxx

Three months... and Sakisaka remained in coma still. Yet he had often see Ainosuke visiting him everyday, never giving up hope for his brother. Oh, he knew of Sakisaka's real name by now—he's just not used to it. He might just refer to him as Sakisaka or Ainosuke's brother... but never Yumehito. Because for some reason, it felt as if he was talking about a stranger.

Regardless, he know that he have to tell Ainosuke about his thoughts. This was no longer about the cases that had happened months ago, those cases were already closed. Why bother with them anymore when most of the criminals involved had either been imprisoned or dead? And practically almost everyone had moved on from that...

No, this was because it had already been too long. Even if he had never known who Tanaka Yumehito really was in the past... he had worked with Sakisaka long enough. It was cruel and selfish for them to let him remained hanging onto life support, while he could have just passed peacefully.

Yes, it was hard... but he needed to tell Ainosuke about this.

He could have told him the moment he entered the room Sakisaka was placed in. In the end, his courage failed him.

There was nothing much that have changed inside the room. Aside from Ainosuke's things placed at the corner of the room—the kid appeared to have treated this room as his second home ever since—the room had remained looking the same as when he had walked in here the first time. Several elaborate machinery had been placed near the bed as wires and tubes were attached to Sakisaka's body, ensuring his survival. The monitor nearby had kept its usual rhythm, there was no hint of Sakisaka's condition ever improving.

Kato turned towards Ainosuke as he called his name aloud.

Barely noticing his entrance, Ainosuke continued talking to his brother as if he was actually awake. He shook his head as Ainosuke started telling his brother that he had come visiting him again...

xxx

"Ainosuke..."

"What is it?", he asked, barely paying any attention as Ainosuke continued talking to his brother. "—And you know, _niichan... _today during class—"

"Ainosuke-kun!"

Ainosuke turned towards Kato as the detective stared at him glumly.

"Enough, Ainosuke. Don't let him suffer anymore..."

"Kato-san! How many times should I tell you—I will not stop keeping my hopes—"

"Ainosuke..."

"No! My brother WILL wake up one day, I _know_ he would! You don't need to worry about me if that's all y—"

"Ainosuke! Don't you think you have to move on by now—"

Kato frowned as Ainosuke ignored him again and turned to pay attention towards his brother. He noticed nothing unusual before realizing that Ainosuke was slightly alarmed. He turned to look towards the monitors as he detected nothing at all.

"Ainosuke... what—!"

It was then when he had noticed that Sakisaka's right hand that Ainosuke had been holding had moved slightly. It wasn't much but that was enough to set Ainosuke on his feet. He was about to say something to Ainosuke before noticing that Sakisaka's eyes twitched, before opening ever so slowly...

He immediately rushed to get the doctor as he heard Ainosuke cry in relief behind him, happy that somehow... his vigil all this time had finally giving him some result.

xxx

"_This was not unexpected. Tanaka-san had after all lost a huge amount of blood last time and he had been in a coma for a long time. It was not surprising that he would at least suffer some brain damage at all._

_Then again... even from the very beginning, I have not expected him to even survive this ordeal . Tanaka-san's recovery was in itself a miracle."_

Kato continued staring at Ainosuke, who remained unaffected despite the first sentence his brother had spoken to him was... _Who are you?_ He was not even alarmed at the fact his brother was now a mere shell of what he used to be, with no memories of the past or even of himself. Ainosuke appeared satisfied enough that Yumehito at least seemed to be able to sense that Ainosuke was important to him despite his lost of memory. He watched his former partner ran his hand on Ainosuke's cheeks as the brothers seemed to be engaged in some kind of non-verbal exchange between each other. He walked out of the room as the scene became too unbearable for him to watch.

xxx

Ainosuke gently placed his brother's arm on his side as Yume drifted back to sleep, his features returned to the peaceful appearance that he had always remembered. He smiled weakly as he rested his head on the pillow.

"It's all right. I'll take care of you now, _niichan._ Even if you can't remember anything at all, I'll remember for you. Even if you cannot do anything like how you used to do, I'll do it for you. _Niichan_ had done a lot and sacrificed so much for me, it's time I'm repaying the favour."

"_Silly, are you being an idiot now?"_

Ainosuke grinned as his brother's words resounded in his mind.

_Yes, I am an idiot. If I could be with you still for even another moment... I don't mind being called an idiot for the rest of my life. Niichan... was the light of my hope._

That's enough reason for me...


End file.
